News, observations and reader questions about the Sacramento Kings and the NBA.

March 7, 2011

*First an injury update: DeMarcus Cousins doesn't think his shin injury is serious but said he was scared when Marcus Thornton fell into his leg in the fourth quarter. He said he was able to jump out of the way enough to prevent a serious injury but was afraid his leg was going to "snap." Cousins finished with 20 pints and 11 rebounds, but didn't score in the second half.

*Kings coach Paul Westphal said the Rockets didn't do anything differently against Cousins in the second half. But after getting 15 shots in the first half, Cousins only took five in the second half. Westphal said fatigue might have played a part. Cousins said he didn't know what happened but noted the Kings have a tendency to panic and try to go one-on-one when things go bad.

*The notion of Cousins being tired would be odd considering he did have a break at halftime.

*As for the game, the defense was the biggest problem. The Rockets shot 53 percent. The Rockets lowest-scoring quarter was 28 points in the fourth quarter.

*The Kings now have the league's worst home record at 8-24 and have lost seven of their last eight homes games.

*Rick Adelman tied Dick Motta for 10th all-time with 935 career wins tonight. Fitting that Adelman would reach that mark in Sacramento where he won 395 games. That's still the top mark in franchise history. Adelman's career winning percentage trails only Phil Jackson and Red Aurebach in league history.

*The win put the Rockets (33-32) above .500 for the first time all season. The Kings are now 15-46. That's the third-worst record in the NBA.

THIRD QUARTER
Rockets 95, Kings 74

*DeMarcus Cousins looked to be on his way to a new career high, but was scoreless in the third quarter. But that's not all that went wrong for the Kings. Besides shooting poorly (eight of 25) the Kings can't stop the Rockets (10 of 15).

*Kevin Martin finally did something of note, scoring 10 of his 15 points in the third. Six of those points come on free throws. Kyle Lowry is close to a triple double (19 points, eight assists, seven rebounds) but at this rate he won't be needed in the fourth quarter.

*The Kings are up to 13 turnovers that have led to 26 points for the Rockets.

*The Rockets have made all 19 of their free throws.

*Luis Scola (left knee) did not return to the game for the Rockets.

HALFTIME
Rockets 65, Kings 58

*The second quarter was an example of how the Kings don't want to play defense. They allowed 36 points while Houston made 13 of 19 shots. Houston has made all 13 of its free throws and is shooting 51.1 percent from the field.

*The Kings also are giving up too much off turnovers. The Rockets have 16 points off eight turnovers by the Kings.

*The defense and turnovers help explain how the Kings could trail by seven while shooting 56.5 percent (26 of 46). DeMarcus Cousins has been unstoppable with 20 points on 10 of 15 shooting and has resumed some of verbal sparring with Brad Miller.

*Kevin Martin hasn't done much to hurt the Kings. He's missed seven of eight shots, but Kyle Lowry (11 points, six assists) has made up for Martin's off night.

FIRST QUARTER
Kings 30, Rockets 29

*Kings rookie DeMarcus Cousins is off to a hot start with 12 points while the backcourt of Marcus Thornton and Beno Udrih each has seven points. Udrih also has three assists. Cousins made six of 10 from the field.

*Chase Budinger and Kyle Lowry each have seven points for the Rockets. Kevin Martin is off to a slow start. He's missed six of seven shots.

*Francisco Garcia started at small forward in just his second game back from injury. Omri Casspi (back stiffness) is back in the lineup and played in the first quarter. That means Donte Greene can expect to see his minutes cut into significantly.

*The media caught up with Rick Adelman before the game. The former Kings coach said it would be "sad" to see the Kings leave Sacramento. He added that he always thought the Kings would get a new arena but the economy hasn't helped that endeavor.

"We had some great years here and good memories and I'd hate to see the fans and the people of Sacramento lose this team," Adelman said.